After a brief pause for recuperation after the Windows 8 launch, Microsoft's Windows supremo Steven Sinofsky went straight out and started on Surface and how it measures up to competition.
"It's not just a tablet. It's actually the best tablet that I've ever used," he said. "It's also not just a laptop, but it's the best laptop …

Re: He would say that./

The Surface screen is higher quality with lower reflectivity, deeper blacks, and the resolution is enhanced by Clear Type, so there is little to choose between them in terms of the display. Plus all iPad applications actually run at 1024x768 anyway so that they can support the older iPads and the iPad mini.

Re: He would say that./

Shame

10.6 inch screen and a poor resolution compared to full size iPad. The bar has been set high by apple when it comes to screens and android tablets are finally stepping up to the plate but this Microsoft effort is still born.

It looks better than an iPad and it has some great built in features like the kick stand but their target market should have been people who didn't want the apple walled garden

Instead all they've done with RT is given them a different walled garden

Re: Shame

Erm - plus the Surface has support for 420 milion hardware devices at launch via USB, it runs MS Office, has a memory slot, has a 3mm thick keyboard cover, has faster performance than the iPad 3, has much higher build quality and doesnt break as easily, uses better case material, and it costs less for the equivalent memory spec. iPad 3 model....

Re: Shame

It might be faster than the iPad 3 but that's old hat now and no longer even available for sale. It's the iPad with Retina Display (aka iPad 4) that Surface will need to compete with and it's highly unlikely that it's faster than that.

Re: Shame

I agree a 1080p screen (or better) for Surface RT is desirable but realistically Tegra 3 isn't up to the job and Microsoft so far don't control the SoC so they had little choice for an October release. Apple have now played their A6 hole card early to regain a clear performance advantage but we can expect to see more Cortex-A15 announcements at CES January making 2013 an interesting year for Windows RT/Android/iOS competition on price and performance.

Great

Great..

Business

The more I examine the varying decent in-depth reviews on windows8 (specifically winRT) and surface, the more it becomes clear that Microsoft is very much targeting the business market.

The iPad, despite being adopted by business to a degree, is more of an entertainment/consumption device.

Ditto for Android tablets such as the Nexus.

What Microsoft appear to aiming to do, is to bridge the gap between productivity and tablet devices.

Yes, we've joked that the surface is a confused device - "look, it's a notebook!" - "no, it's a tablet!" - but perhaps that's the right direction for Microsoft.

If the surface is a success, it will be in the Office and it will be "Office" that drives that success.

A device which can double up as both presentation - in boardrooms - and productivity - on the road - will appeal to businesses far more than one that is mostly presentation based.

I can't see the surface making much of an impact in the consumer market - not at it's price point and not with the iPad (at the same price point) so entrenched. Also, with a plethora of cheap and excellent Android tablets available, which are perfectly capable of filling the consumer middle-ground, Microsoft have to take the battle elsewhere.

I think they have. The reviews are mostly favourable. The OS gets a thumbs up, albeit with the caveat of a steep learning curve. The surface gets mixed reviews, but by all accounts is manages to hit the productivity sweet spot decently.

I hope it's a success. Although I use Linux and MacOS, I also use windows and I can see myself at work in a few years using Windows 8, possibly on a touch device.